California Credit Unions in Joint Core Processing Conversion

A Tennessee CUSO has won the core processing business of a group of 10 Southern California credit unions.

The contract wins pushes the client list at Memphis-based Share One Inc. past the century mark, with 104 clients now committed to its New Solutions core platform.

The 10 credit unions are members of the Southern California Credit Union Association, a group of several dozen credit unions working together to leverage their buying power as they find cost-effective solutions to technology and other process and management problems.

Eight of the credit unions will be running their platform through Share One’s service center while two will be running them in-house.

And two of the credit unions, the $66 million La Loma FCU and the$56 million CalCom FCU will cooperate in a beta test arrangement for Share One, the company said.

La Loma FCU will convert first and then host CalCom on a shared system when it converts, with La Loma acting as a service center for CalCom, the CUSO said.

Share One now offers its NewSolutions system in three ways: in-house, as a traditional service bureau or as a hosted solution, in which NewSolutions hosts the physical equipment but the credit union is responsible for its own processing.

Currently, there are 52 credit unions using New Solutions through the service center, 48 running it in-house and four through the new hosting option, a number the company said it expects to see grow as existing clients migrate to that model.

Jon Hernandez, SCCUA founder and CEO of three credit unions – CalCom FCU, City of Downey FCU and Mattel FCU – said the association’s Core Processing Group sent RFPs to 10 processors and after onsite demonstrations, chose NewSolutions because of its flexibility, level of service, pricing and feedback from other users.

The group dynamic allows group pricing as well as the ability for the credit unions, and the company, to learn from each other as each credit union converts and shares its experience, Share One said.

Hernandez added, “Our initial goal was to generate cost savings and enhance the search process by working together as a group. And once everyone completes the conversions we hope to be able to work collaboratively and consolidate our back office processing functions and share employees amongst credit unions on the system when there is a need.” One of the 10 credit unions asked not to be named. Here are the other nine and their previous core processing platform, according to Share One:

San Francisco Recreation and Parks FCU and Nikkei CU have made the conversion, while the rest will be completed this year and next, Share One said.

“Because Share One is a CUSO, we can relate to the benefits of collaboration and shared resources. Individually, each credit union will realize immediate benefits for staff and members by implementing NewSolutions and once each credit union is converted, they will also see the advantages of a core system in common,” said Roy Stewart, the CUSO’s vice president of sales, Western Region.